A Saiyuki Chibi Tale
by Carrot The LuvMachine
Summary: Goku has always been the youngest member of the Sanzo-ikkou, and according to Sanzo he was also the least responsible. This has to change though, since Sanzo, Hakkai, and Gojyo have been turned into younger versions of themselves! Goku babysits! 39 58


The sun gleamed down upon them, casting their awkward shadows onto the sand below. The heat seemed almost unbearable, but the four travelers should be used to it by now. They've crossed hotter deserts than this. Besides, this time they came prepared, each with their own canteen of water, but water was no cure for an empty stomach.

"Harehetta..." came the well expected complaint of the youngest traveler.

"Urasai." The eldest grunted through clenched teeth.

"But we didn't even eat breakfast!" the youngest companion whined. His stomach let out a gurgled noise in agreement.

The red haired man in the back seat turned to their young friend and caught him in a headlock. "You shoulda packed some food from the inn before we left, baka saru."

Struggling to break free from the headlock, Goku shoved Gojyo further onto his side of the back seat. "Don't do that! It's hot enough out here without your perverted body hanging all over me, ero kappa!"

A chuckle came from the driver. Glistening emerald eyes watched the two back seat companions from the rear view mirror as he maneuvered the jeep through the desert sand. "Now, now, no fighting. We're barely a mile from the last town and you two are already full of complaints."

Goku gave a sigh, dramatically collapsing back into his seat and staring in Hakkai's direction. "But I'm so hungry..."

"If I hear that one more ti–"

Hakkai successfully cut Sanzo off before he had a chance to brandish his infamous fan. "I thought you might forget to pack some food on your own, Goku, so I stored some apples in your backpack."

The young brunette's face lit up in a smile as he nearly lunged forward into the front seat to embrace the healer. "Thanks, Hakkai! You're a life saver!"

THWACK!

"Ow!" Goku fell back into his seat clutching his aching head. He shot his blonde haired keeper a glare. "Sanzo, what the hell was that for?!"

"Stay in your seat." The monk grumbled, storing his fan away within his robes for future use. "It's crowded enough up here without any annoying monkeys."

Said monkey continued staring at the back of the blonde head in front of him, a lazy smile forming. It didn't matter that Sanzo had yelled at him, it never would matter. Goku would be happy if Sanzo paid him any kind of attention, be it negative or positive. Somewhere along their little mission, the chimp had figured out his feelings for the monk went beyond friendship. He found himself sneaking secret glances at his keeper, losing himself in those violet eyes that seemed to shimmer with stubbornness. He didn't care that Sanzo was rude, uncaring, unfeeling, or overly grumpy. To Goku, all these qualities were what made Sanzo no one other than Sanzo, so the monkey cherished them all.

Feeling that he had become lost in yet another "Sanzo Trance", Goku turned to the tiny storage area of the jeep where their packs were stored. He stood on his knees in his seat, rummaging through each pack in search of his own. First, he pushed aside the heaviest pack—which was no doubt Gojyo's, storing all of the kappa's beers—uncovering a slightly smaller pack underneath. He flipped this one around, finding Hakkai's name printed neatly on the flap in the front. Frowning, Goku dug deeper only to come across the smallest pack of all, which held some of Sanzo's spare clothes. Furrowing his brows, the saru leapt into the back of the jeep, pushing all the searched packs aside to uncover—nothing. Nothing? How could that be? Where was his backpack?

Realization hit him hard. "STOP!"

Caught off guard by the sudden outburst, Hakkai's foot found the breaks, successfully stopping the vehicle and nearly tossing them all from it in one swift motion. The healer recovered quickly, spinning in his seat to look at Goku with a startled and worried expression. "What's wrong?"

Gojyo pulled himself from the tiny foot space between his seat and Hakkai's, and adjusted his headband which had fallen over his eyes. "Geez, 'Kai! I think I swallowed my cigarette!"

Sanzo seemed to be so angry at the sudden stop that he refused to turn around to acknowledge his companions. He had hit his head against the dashboard with a strong force—since he wasn't wearing his seatbelt—and was fighting back the headache he had this morning which was quickly turning into a migraine with the added bump to his skull.

Goku's large golden eye's met Hakkai's emeralds, frantic. "I left my pack at the inn!"

Gojyo shot the monkey a fierce glare. "You nearly killed us for that?!"

Sanzo was now fuming.

"I need it! It has my clothes and food!"

Hakkai gave a smile, trying to mask his aggravation. "It's alright, we'll just go back and retrieve it."

Goku opened his mouth to thank the sinner when he was rudely interrupted.

"No." Sanzo spoke, still not facing any of them.

"What do you mean 'no'?" Hakkai questioned, turning to look at the blonde. "Surely you don't mean to leave Goku's things behind?"

Sanzo closed his eyes, he _really _didn't want to look at any one of the three right now. His companions could be so moronic that it made his blood boil. "The monkey was dumb enough to forget it. He should go back and get it alone."

"Sanzo–"

Hakkai was interrupted before he could try and save his fellow brunette.

"He isn't responsible enough to remember to bring the _one _thing he has to look after. He has to go back and get it alone."

Goku shot Sanzo a glare. He really could be a prick sometimes. "Fine." the boy replied, leaping over the side of the jeep to land in the sand below.

"Goku, you don't have to–"

"It's fine, Hakkai." Goku replied, turning his back on the other three. "I'll be back soon." With this, the boy took off running through the desert.

Hakkai watched him for a while before putting the jeep in park and heaving a sigh. "You could be so cruel sometimes, Sanzo."

The monk reached into his sleeve and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. Taking one from the pack, he put it to his lips and lit it with his lighter. "He has to learn to be responsible. We can't keep treating him like a child forever."

Gojyo let out a laugh, having recovered from his fall off his seat. "But Sanzo-sama, you know how Hakkai loves to play house. He was born to play the role of the mother!"

Hakkai gave a playful glare to the kappa in the back seat. "Sanzo, may I borrow your fan for a moment?"

- - -

For once in his life, Goku was angry. Not the kind of angry he got when fighting a youkai who was a bit too annoying, but the kind that caused him to clench his fists so tightly he felt he could tear the skin of his palms apart. He trudged through the desert in record timing, thinking about nothing but how much of a jerk Sanzo could be. His feet carried him into the town, retracing the steps the four of them had taken to leave the quaint little place. In no time, he was once again at the inn they had stayed at the previous night.

He went up to the desk and explained about his missing backpack to the kind woman behind it. Obviously, said woman seemed to think he was nothing but an adorable lost child, because she kept asking him stupid questions like "where are your parents?" or "do you remember what room you stayed in?". Of course he remembered what room he stayed in, he wasn't a five year old with the memory span of a goldfish!

Eventually, the lady handed him the key to the room where he had last seen his backpack. When she asked if she could help him look, he harshly told her he could do it himself. Only when he began searching the room did he realize how rude he must have sounded.

'I'm starting to sound like Sanzo...' he thought, opening the small closet in the room. Sitting on the floor was his backpack. He picked it up with a smile and threw one strap over his shoulder. 'I'd better get back before Sanzo gets even _more _angry.'

It had taken some time, but Goku was finally back in the desert, the jeep being in sight. He smiled to himself and began to pick up his pace, when suddenly a loud explosion sounded in the distance.

His eyes widened as the force from the blast sent him flying backwards onto the sand behind him. He raised his arms and used them to shield his eyes, gritting his teeth. 'A youkai attack?'

When the aftershock from the explosion blew away with the wind, he got back to his feet and started racing over to the jeep.

"Sanzo! Hakkai! Gojyo! Are you alright?!"

The instant Hakuryuu had heard his voice, the dragon shifted forms and came flying toward Goku. He hovered in front of the boy, flapping his wings frantically and crying out. "Kyuu! Kyuu!"

Goku stopped for a moment to stare up at the dragon. "Hakuryuu? What happened?"

Hakuryuu gave one final "kyuu!" before flying back to the spot where the explosion had happened, Goku on his heels. As they drew closer, Goku realized that his companions were no where to be seen. In fact, all he could see was sand–no, wait, now that he was about ten feet away he noticed lumpy outlines of clothing on the ground. Gathering up speed, Goku raced forward and came to a halt in front of the piles of clothing.

The boy bent down and reached out for the fabric closest to him, which looked strangely like—

"Sanzo's robes?..." Goku took the fabric into his hands and looked up. "But...if Sanzo's robes are here...then–"

"Mmm..."

Goku's ears perked up. Something had just made a very muffled noise. Looking down, he realized that it was coming from inside the pile of clothing. Cautiously, he rummaged through the robes until his hand was met by locks of blonde hair. His heart now beating wildly, Goku pushed the rest of the robes aside, uncovering a small—and quite naked—young boy.

The boy looked very dazed. He was clutching his head and moaning, as if he just woke up from being knocked unconscious. His eyes were clenched shut, but they soon opened when he realized that someone was staring at him.

Violet met gold, and Goku felt the wind being knocked out of him.

"S-S-Sanzo?!"

Staring back at him, was the image of Sanzo as a child. Golden hair capped his head, a stubborn but shy look remained on his face, and curious large violet eyes stared back up at him. He looked as if he could be no older than the age of five.

"Sanzo..." Goku breathed, reaching out a hand to the boy's face. "What happened to you?"

The boy's eyes widened and he flinched away from the hand. "Don't touch me! Leave me alone!"

Goku's hand stopped its pursuit and dropped to his side. "Sanzo?..."

The little boy backed up, a look of horror on his face. That was when Goku realized; Sanzo didn't know who he was. He didn't even remember that his name was Sanzo!

'His mind must have reverted back to when he was a kid...'

"Kyuu! Kyuu!"

Hakuryuu's calls pulled Goku from his thoughts. He looked up to find the white dragon tugging at a pile of green clothes that could belong to none other than Hakkai. Getting to his feet—and nearly forgetting about Sanzo—Goku went to help the dragon. Together, they uncovered a young version of Hakkai who must have presumably been around the age of four. Large, stubborn green eyes glared back up at him from a very pudgy little face. Hakkai—it seemed—wasn't always as lithe was he was at the age of twenty two.

Goku smiled down at the mini Hakkai. "Hi there, Hakkai."

Hakkai's glare stuck. "That isn't my name...and who are you?" He had the voice of one of those kids who thinks they know it all.

Goku gave a sigh, not phased by Hakkai's uncharacteristic rudeness. "I guess you guys really don't remember anything, huh?"

Goku suddenly felt something poking at his back. He turned around to come face to face with a boy with short crimson hair and red eyes. Gojyo.

The younger version of Gojyo still seemed to be the tallest out of the three, though he was the same age as Hakkai. He—like the others—was completely nude.

"Hi." Gojyo greeted, gripping onto Goku's sleeve.

"Gojyo," Goku stifled a laugh, seeing his companions this way was priceless, but now wasn't the time to be teasing them. 'They're probably confused and scared...'

"You know my name?" Gojyo asked, his head tilting to the side. "How come?"

Goku had to think for a minute. He hadn't ever dealt with children before, so he would have to learn to explain things in a very simple manner. "You probably don't remember, but I'm your friend," he started, placing a hand on Gojyo's head. The young kappa gave a smile at this, feeling reassured and safe now. "You can call me Goku Nii-chan."

Gojyo's smile grew as he nodded. "Kay!"

Goku returned the smile and decided to take a seat in the sand. 'Well, at least Gojyo isn't one of those bratty annoying kids...I think I like him better this way.' He suddenly felt something kick him in the side, and turned around to face Hakkai.

"I'm hot!" the young healer whined, scrunching up his chubby face. "I want some water!"

"Me too!" Gojyo chimed in. "Nii-san, I want water too."

Goku gave a sigh. "Water, huh? Let's see..." Scanning the area, Goku was able to locate the fallen backpacks of his companions. Within each of them was a canteen. He gathered the three canteens and carried them back over to Hakkai and Gojyo, who were impatiently waiting for him.

"Here you go," Goku said, handing one canteen over to Gojyo, who replied with a "thank you!". Before he had the chance to hand one to Hakkai, it was snatched from his hands. Goku glared down at the miniature Hakkai, wondering how he was able to change this drastically to become the Hakkai that Goku was familiar with. He seemed to be nothing more than a little brat.

"You two wait here. I have to give this one to Sanzo."

Walking back over to the spot where he had last left the tiny monk, Goku discovered that Sanzo was missing. Frantically, he searched the surrounding area and finally found that the small blonde boy had wedged himself between two rocks not far from where the others were. Goku bent down, discovering that the space Sanzo had crawled through was much too small for him to use. He'd have to get Sanzo to come out on his own.

"Sanzo," two violet eyes looked in his direction. "I have water for you." Sanzo shook his head, bringing his knees up to his chest and hugging them. Goku frowned at this. Sanzo was shy as a child? Goku would have never guessed. Or maybe he was just frightened. Reaching out a hand, Goku smiled through the hole at Sanzo. "Listen, I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm your friend."

Sanzo stared back at him, looking very lost. "I don't...have friends."

This nearly shattered Goku's heart. That's right, growing up Sanzo lived with older monks. He never had anyone his age to play with, or talk to. All he had was Koumyo. Goku smiled, knowing a way in which he could get Sanzo to trust him. "It's okay, I'm a friend of Koumyo's."

At this, Sanzo lifted his head, his eyes nearly shimmering with delight. "You know master Koumyo?"

Goku gave a nod and a big smile. Maybe he wasn't as bad with children as he thought. "Mmhmm! Koumyo asked me to look after you for a little while. So won't you come with me?"

All too eagerly, the young Sanzo took hold of Goku's hand and was pulled out from between the rocks.

Gaining a child's trust was the key to getting them to listen to you, Goku soon realized. For after he had gotten Sanzo to trust him, the mini monk never left the monkey's side. Sanzo would cling to Goku's jeans, not paying any attention to the others as Goku tried to fashion makeshift clothes out of the material from their adult outfits. He had managed to fasten Hakkai's pink scarf into a long sort of shirt for the young healer to wear, though getting the boy to actually _wear _the material was the harder part. Hakkai didn't want to listen to a thing Goku said, and refused to put his new clothes on. Instead, he turned dressing time into play time and made it a game of tag.

With Hakuryuu's help, the game was ended rather quickly, and Hakkai was practically tackled into the sand and forced to wear his new clothes. Mission accomplished. Next, Goku took Gojyo's headband, unraveled it, and wrapped it around the kappa's waist. It didn't seem to matter how goofy this made Gojyo look, the kappa obeyed his nii-san and wore the clothes anyway.

For Sanzo, Goku took off his shirt—it being the smallest article of clothing within the group's artillery—and wrapped the young monk up in it. The fact that Sanzo couldn't walk in his new clothes didn't seem to matter, since the blonde refused to go anywhere if he wasn't carried by Goku.

After stuffing the rest of everyone's clothing into their backpacks—and throwing the three heaviest packs over his shoulders (Gojyo had volunteered to carry the fourth)—Goku gathered Sanzo up in his arms and made sure the other two followed him as he headed back to the town once again. He needed some place where he could adequately feed and clothe these children, and the closest place was the town, so that was where they were now headed. Once they were situated and taken care of, Goku would have to find out exactly how his companions got this way and more importantly he'd have to figure out a way to change them back.

- - -

-Author's Corner-

Well, I really shouldn't have started a new fanfic when I already have a few going...But the idea for this popped into my head, and I just had to write it!

Oh, and if anyone's going to ask why I made Hakkai chubby, it's cause I wanted to. There's no proof that he was fat as a little kid, but I think he would be adorable if he had a little extra weight on him as a chibi.

Also, yes, everyone is going to be acting very out of character (except for Goku), but that's because they're children. When Hakkai was a child, he was cold and cruel. Sanzo seemed more shy. And Gojyo, I'm going to assume, looked up to his big brother. That's why they act the way they do in my fic.

Please read and review and I'll start working on the next chapter very soon!! Arigatou!

-Colie


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